How to Clean a Gaming Mouse?

Gaming mice are fundamental to our gaming experience. Many people use gaming mouses for purposes other than gaming, such as designing, programming, and other tasks. These mice were designed to be used for an extended period.

Despite using gaming mice for many hours each day, most people don’t clean them. A dirty gaming mouse will become a damaged gaming mouse. If you spent so much money on this mouse, it is best to properly take care of it.

Cleaning gaming mice is not hard. You don’t need any particular substance for this procedure. You can use everyday items to make sure your mouse remains hygienic. What you do need are patience and gentleness. The gaming mouse is smaller than most computer accessories, and so they need extra attention while cleaning. Read ahead to know the cleaning process in detail.

 

How to Clean a Gaming Mouse? 

Cleaning your gaming mouse regularly is a must for frequent computer users. Mouses are often ignored when it comes to computer cleaning, but it needs to be done. You can clean your gaming mouse with everyday household items, such as microfiber cloths, Q-tips, alcohol or alcohol wipes.

You must wipe your mouse with a dry cloth after using it every day. For deep cleaning, you need to scrub both the outside and the inside of the mouse. Clean it every month to ensure that it does not malfunction due to dust and grime. Gamers and designers must follow the cleaning routine reasonably often as they use computers for more than average time.

What Should I Know About Cleaning Gaming Mouse?  

Cleaning a mouse requires time and patience. Since it is a technological device, it needs to be cleaned carefully lest you should damage it.

There are two steps to the cleaning procedure. The first is when you clean the outside of the gaming mouse and the second part is cleaning the inside.

You will need to use a microfiber cloth. You can use Q-tips or cotton buds as well. Toothpicks are also an excellent choice for removing tiny specks of dust. The microfiber ensures that fibers won’t be stuck to the mouse. Q-tips help to reach narrower places. You will also need neat and dry rags.

The following cleaning product you must use is alcohol or isopropyl alcohol. As we all know, alcohol is a great germ killer. It helps to clean thoroughly. But if alcohol isn’t available, other disinfectant wipes or water solutions can do the trick. Screwdrivers and tweezers are also crucial for opening the gaming mice.

How to Clean the Exterior of Gaming Mouse? 

The first step is disconnecting the gaming mouse from the computer. You cannot keep the mouse connected while cleaning. For a wireless mouse, you need to turn the power off. Try to clean it while the power is connected. You might get electrical shocks or other accidents, so be cautious.

To clean the outside of the gaming mouse, you need to use a microfiber cloth, Q-tip, and alcohol. You will clean the accumulated dirt from the crevices and curves. Dip the fabric and Q-tip in alcohol. Make sure it is not dripping. Wipe the outside with the soaked cloth.

For narrow hard to reach sides, use the Q-tip. Clean slowly and carefully since those places are delicate. Cleaning the mouse sensor is vital, and it must be done with patience and precision. Use the Q-tip and gently wipe the sensor. Don’t put too much pressure while cleaning.

If you feel that you can’t reach all the little places properly, you can use air guns. You have to put it next to the fine spots that you couldn’t reach and blow air into them. For mice with rolling pieces, you need to roll the wheel for the dirt to become loose. Then wipe the dirt with the microfiber cloth.

Gaming mouse crevices are harder to clean. The area of the buttons and the seams of the mouse body are the crevices. They are pretty small and can’t be cleaned appropriately with Q-tips. But they need to be maintained as well, so use toothpicks to reach those places.

Toothpicks are great for those sensor surface places that you could not clean. But toothpicks have pointy heads, so be cautious when you’re using them. As with all the other steps, you need to be careful here too. Q-tips and toothpicks are prone to breaking off easily, so putting too much pressure while swabbing is a no-go.

How to Clean the Interior of Gaming Mouse? 

After you have finished cleaning the exterior of the mouse, you need to start cleaning the interior. This process requires gentleness and precision. Don’t try to hasten it, as a tiny mistake might damage your gaming mouse. Keep your gaming mouse manual near you for the disassembling procedure.

Start cleaning the inside of the gaming mouse only after the alcohol on the mouse shell has dried off. The gaming mouse disassembling process differs a lot because it mainly depends on the mouse brand. Some mouse shells or tops need to be unscrewed, while some can be popped off easily. Check your gaming mouse’s manual to see how it needs to be done.

After you have taken the top off, get to cleaning the inside. Use a new Q-tip and dip it in alcohol gain. Just as you did with the exterior cleaning, make sure the alcohol isn’t dripping. Gaming mice have small openings on the shell, and it allows dust, dead skin cells, crumbs, and even hair to accumulate inside. Use the Q-tip to clean it carefully.

The following cleaning spot is the mouse wheel. Use the Q-tip to clean it thoroughly. If you want, you can clean the circuit board as well. The circuit board is sensitive, so extra caution is required. Instead of Q-tips, use tweezers to clean the dirt from the board.

After you have finished cleaning the inside of your gaming mouse, do not assemble it immediately. You need to wait until the alcohol has dried off and then put it back together. Assemble it the same way you have opened it. Use the manual as a guide if necessary.

The last step is connecting it back to the computer. Before you reconnect or turn the power on, remember to check if every piece of the mouse is completely dry. It needs to be totally dried because a small sum of alcohol moisture can damage your gaming mouse and computer once the power is on.

 

Why Should You Clean Your Gaming Mouse?  

When it comes to computer maintenance, people always forget to clean their gaming mouse. Some people don’t even know that mouse needs to be cleaned like every other device. The mouse is touched most out of all the computer accessories, and you must regularly maintain its cleaning process.

Did you know that the computer desk alone has 400 times more bacteria than a toilet seat? Moreover, the mouse that most people ignore to clean has 1676 microbes per square inch. Just because you can’t see these microorganisms doesn’t mean that they are not harmful to you.

The easiest solution to keep yourself safe from computer desk bacteria is to clean it regularly. You need to maintain the cleaning routine as much as possible. If you’re a frequent computer user or a gamer, you spend a lot of time touching your gaming mouse. It is bound to get dirty, and it is your job to keep it hygienic.

 

How Do I Maintain a Clean Gaming Mouse? 

While you need to clean your gaming mouse regularly, you still need to be careful to keep it clean. Don’t let too much gunk accumulate. Remember that if you maintain your gaming mouse properly, it will make the cleaning process much more manageable. You don’t have to put pressure on your mouse while cleaning and ensure keeping it safe.

To maintain a clean gaming mouse, you can follow some steps. Such as, don’t touch your mouse with unclean hands. Wash and dry your hands before using the mouse. Don’t use it with food stuck in your fingers. On that note, you should never eat or drink around your mouse and computer. This will help to avoid spilling and damaging.

After each day’s use, wipe your computer, keyboard, and mouse. It may seem like a lot of work at first, but the effort will pay off. Not only will your gaming mouse avoid accumulating dirt this way, but it will also prevent bacteria build-up. All these precautions will keep your mouse hygienic.

 

Conclusion

Using your mouse frequently and not cleaning it will lead to the mouse malfunctioning. Keeping the gaming mouse in good health is an absolute must for gamers because a faulty mouse will impact your game.

Remember that every tech product needs to be cleaned and maintained correctly to be functioning and durable. Hopefully, now you know the steps you need to take to preserve your gaming mouse.